Linda Stephan

Linda Stephan has been reporting for the IPR News team for the past eight years. She holds a masters degree in journalism from Michigan State University and has won more than 20 awards for radio news coverage.

Linda grew up in Traverse City and considers this her “dream job.” She believes balanced storytelling can help us all to wrestle with the questions that affect our lives up north, our communities, schools, economy and environment.

Linda is an alumnus of Traverse City Central High School, Northwestern Michigan College and Interlochen Arts Camp (All State division). She speaks Swedish and loves reading or being in the woods and near the lakes. She is a great fan of the northern Michigan jazz scene and a state-licensed foster parent.

Fifty years ago, Congress set out to guarantee future generations would always have access to America’s great outdoors in its most natural state. But several recent requests for wilderness protections have been languishing on Capitol Hill.

In the past five years, just one new wilderness bill made it to law. This new law guarantees 35 miles of northern Lake Michigan shoreline will be forever left wild.